Through Her Eyes
by theshame
Summary: Iona is not a devil fruit user, yet she has strange powers along with a strange personality. Kidd and his crew are down on their luck. Kidd isn't just low on money, he's low on patience too. As luck would have it Iona is just the person to help his first issue, but test his second. He's left with no choice but to bring her along his journey.
1. Chapter 1

Hello new and maybe old readers! I started a FanFic with my OC and Law a couple years back. Some things happened that put me off track and then everything I wrote was lost. Everything! It was very disheartening and I've struggled to get back into that story. I would really love to continue it in the future, but the frustration of losing it all is still there, so I find it hard to find inspiration. So, I have decided to start work on another idea and see how that goes. Perhaps I will find new inspiration to continue my old work as I navigate the Once Piece would with my new OC and the Kidd pirates. I hope this new story is enjoyable for most!

Chapter 1. **Red**

Iona had never been one to stay in one place too long. She was a wanderer at heart. She enjoyed going to new places, exploring the vast world and all it had to offer, and sometimes she met interesting people along the way. She always loved meeting pure souls, but her travels always brought along a new set of problems. As much as she loved meeting new and interesting people, these pure souls as she called them, there were even more people that were less than savory. It's not that all of them were bad, it was just that they were clouded.

Iona could see auras, that was her gift, and curse. She noticed people with solid colored auras were focused, driven, and forging a path that was true to their desires and dreams. Not all of them were good people, some in fact were quite horrible by society's standards, but whether good or evil she found them to be the most intriguing and referred to them as pure souls. She had learned a long time ago which aura colors meant someone was safe to be around or not. All colors had the potential to be safe, but Iona paid close attention to the shade.

The people she had the hardest time with, the clouded souls, those were people whos auras were not a solid color, but had multiple. They were generally good people some more so than others, but they were usually misguided. Lacking something in their lives that gave them confidence or purpose. She used to try to help these people, but over time she realized all she was doing was meddling and exhausting herself in the process. Most of the time her help was taken as an offence or the complete opposite would happen, and the person she was helping would become oppressively clingy or dangerous.

That was her current problem. She had been at this island for 2 months now and she already had to leave. *why did I have to go and but my nose in? I swore I was done helping clouds.* She thought to herself as she maneuvered her way through town. She had tried to sneak out of her temporary living quarters unnoticed, luggage in tow, but somehow he had seen her at some point and was following her again. If she could just make it to the docks and find someone to take her along with them she'd be free of her stalkers advances.

She made it to the docks and quickly scanned the people loading the ships, fully aware of the eyes that were boring into her back. She was becoming more concerned as time went on. Iona knew he saw her luggage; a dead give away that she was leaving, and she was certain he would try to stop her at all costs. His behavior had become quite erratic as of late and his blue indigo was quickly turning green. That wasn't good indigo and green were her two least favorite colors for a reason.

looking at the people on the docks she saw too many cloudded souls, there was only one pure and it was indigo. Just walking past an indigo was risky, so she turned 90 degrees on her heel and headed straight for the only place in town that she felt safe.

Kid sat at the bar waiting for the bartender to get him his ale and waited for Killer to join him. Killer had wanted to see what the local black smith had to replace on of his broken SCYTHES and Kid was in no mood to do anything but drink. He had been in a sour mood since he woke up. They had needed to make a costly repair to their ship and funds were getting tight.

He thought about raiding the local town they were docked at, but there were two problems with that idea. Killer in all his wisdom pointed out that the local shipwrights were still working, repairing the damage done by the biggest sea king they had ever seen, and they probably shouldn't start anything with the locals that were working on their boat. The second issue was the marine base that was on the island not too far from the town. Kidd and Killer already had bounties on their heads and bringing attention to themselves with a downed vessel was plain stupid, in case things went south and they needed to escape.

Kidd had been pissed off for 3 days now. Their log pose had set a day ago, and he was still stuck in this shitty town, with these shitty people he couldn't even lay a finger on. He had nothing against the people in particular, but he was feeling broke, pissed, and pent up. He had hoped someone, anyone would talk shit to him so he had a good excuse to bury them six feet under without having to listen to Killers nagging, but unfortunately the locals seemed to be extra careful with their words around him since they docked. It was like they knew he was itching to hurt someone and that pissed him off more.

As he sat there sulking, the attractive bartender plopped his beer down in front of him, causing the ale to froth and slightly spill over the rim of the mug. "Here ya go eyebrows!" She said cheerily giving him a sly smile.

Ignoring the foam Kidd grabbed the handle of the mug and chugged it down. He slammed it back on the counter and asked for another. *eyebrows. Cheeky wench. She is lucky she's the one providing me with my alcohol, otherwise I would have invoked pleading innocence to Killer based on provocation. Well and she does have a nice rack.* He noted as she took his empty glass to grab a refill.

The only thing he noticed about her beside her large breast was that she had black hair and tan skin. He could care less considering most women avoided him like the plague. Killer had mentioned once that it probably had something to do with his face, but Kidd didn't care. He could appreciate a nice ass or pair of tits, but at the end of the day women were just a distraction he didn't have time for.

This time he took his time to enjoy the cold carbonated beverage. His eyes followed the busty woman as she made her way to the other end of the bar and he sipped his ale. *pfft. Flat ass that's a shame. Only the top half of her is nice to look at, and here she was commenting on my lack of eyebrows*

"Iona!" The bartender delightedly shouted in the direction of the entrance.

Kidds eyes shifted some more to look at the newcomer. The only thought in his head was *bubbly* and he could feel a headache coming on already. He couldn't see much of this new woman's figure as she wore a long tan trench coat, the buckle of the belt was flapping at her sides, so he couldn't even tell if she had much of a figure or not. With nothing else to look at he scanned her face. Long dark brown hair that had a slight wave and bounced as she made her way to the counter on the other end from him. She had small but full lips that pulled into a large appealing smile at the sight of her friend. High cheekbones and a small button nose, but the thing that caught his eye the most were her eyes. It was pretty rare to see someone with violet eyes and they were large with long lashes that made them stand out even more. Even if her other features had been less appealing her eyes alone could captivate.

Kidd shook his head and put his focus back on his drink. Getting caught up in a woman's eyes, how pathetic had he become? He took another swig and decided to wait a little longer for Killer *he sure is taking his sweet time* Kidd irritably thought. He had already been waiting for close to an hour and his patience was running thin. As he continued to work on his beverage he listened to the two women at the other end of the bar. Their voices loud enough that he couldn't ignore them even if he tried.

"Iona what's with that coat and those bags? Wait? Are you leaving already!?" the busty bartender whined

"I'm sorry Tia, but yea. I have to."

"But, you've only been here a short while. I thought you said you'd be here about 6 months or so? It's not Marco is it? He still following you?"

"Yea, and it's getting worse. In fact he's following me right now. It always turns out like this with indigos and greens, and based on my personal experience, if I don't get out of here soon it'll become dangerous."

"The whole color thing still confuses me Iona, but I believe you. You've summed up every local I've quizzed you about without even saying hello to them before. I may not get it, but I know you can see a person's true colors at one glance. Pun intended." The dark haired bartender giggled at her own joke. "But, I'm really sad you're leaving. We were just getting so close! I was just about to ask you to be my maid of honor."

"You're not even dating anyone Tia, how could I be your maid of honor?" The brunette asked

"Hey! Planning a wedding is very important to us women! I don't need a man to have it all planned out yet do I?" She defended

"Ummm I guess not. I don't know. Marriage isn't something I've thought about too much. Seems like more of a hassle tying yourself down to one person, and people change over time. Not always for the better too I might add."

"But aren't you engaged?"

"Pfft. Shouldn't you agree to be engaged? I had no say in it, but I can tell you right now I am not marrying that man. I'm in control of my own life and there is no way I will ever marry anyone but especially not him!"

"Okay, okay, I get it you're not the marrying type. Though Iona, I wouldn't write it out entirely. You never know, you might meet someone who will change your mind. So, whens your ship depart? Maybe I can get my boss to let me off early or get a break to give you a proper send off. He's quite fond of you too, so he might even be there to say goodbye too."

"I don't know. I haven't found anyone to take me yet. The dock was full of a bunch of clouds and only 1 pure, but he was an indigo. You know I had to steer clear of that guy."

"Yea you've mentioned something like that before. That's tough luck Iona. I hope you find someone soon, but if you don't today you can stay with me tonight. Marco wouldn't dare do anything to you at my house, not with my brother home for a visit."

Kidd finished his Ale as he listened to the two cluck back and forth. It was a weird ass conversation. What was all that color business? It was clear the smaller woman was in some type of trouble, not that he cared, it was none of his business. He could appreciate the brunettes opinion on marriage though. He could never wrap his head around why anyone would willingly bind themselves to another person forever. It sounded boring and the thought made him feel claustrophobic. The little purple eyed girl had the right idea. It was much better to be free.

He placed his mug back on the counter and barked at the taller woman "Oi! I'll take another!"

"Make that two please!" He heard his first mate call from the direction of the entrance.

He was just about to turn to Killer to admonish him for making him wait, but movement from the smaller woman caught his eye. He turned his full attention to her. Her eyes had lit up and her mouth had taken on an expression of awe. She slammed her hands on the counter and she hopped up making her feet land on the stool she was just sitting on. Starring him directly in the eyes she shouted "RED!"

Did this little chick just call him red? Kidd couldn't figure out if he should be pissed about this woman's nickname for him or not. Was she calling him that based on his hair?

"Tia! He's red! Ohhhhhh a pure red! I haven't seen one of those in sooooo long! It's one of my favorites! Tia look, look!" The overly excited brunette shrieked. Her knees bending and extending back and forth in her excitement.

"Iona! Stop that you're gonna knock your stool over and hit your face on the counter! Sit down!" The bartender pleaded with the girl.

"But Tiaaaaaaaaa! Red!"

Kidd watched in odd fascination as the bartender climbed over the bar and began wrestling the brunette down from her dangerous perch. Kidd was slightly amused to see that the small woman was not making it easy for her friend.

"I'm fine! Leave me alone Tia!"

"you're gonna hurt yourself and you're making a scene Iona. Everyone is staring. Ah! You elbowed me in the face!"

"Then let me go or I'll elbow those overgrown boobs next!"

"I swear to god Tia I'm gonna pull this stool out from under you! And you have no room to talk!"

"Then I'll just climb up on the bar"

Kidd completely forgot about his request for another brew as he watched the two women. The smaller one in fact did begin to climb on the bar, but the taller woman, now with a slightly swollen cheek, looked fed up. She grabbed the smaller one around the waist and began pulling her off the bar. The bartenders irritation seems to have given her extra strength, the weird color girl was losing her grip on the counter. They soon went flying toward the floor out of view on the other side of the counter.

Kidd heard the distinct sound of the women hitting the floor and a few complaints of pain when Killer made it to his side. "What is happening?" The masked blonde asked him.

"I have no idea, but I'm pretty sure the little one is crazy. Just ignore them."

"Ho...? That's a first. Normally I'm the one telling you to ignore people." Killer commented jokingly.

"What took you so long? I was getting bored. Though I would have been more patient if I knew I would be getting a show." The Red haired Captain inquired.

"I got what I needed and then I went to check on the ship. All our supplied are loaded and the men are putting them away. The repairs should be done in the next hour or two, so we should be able to set sail after that."

"It's about damn time. I can't stand another minute here. Everything is pissing me off."

"Ship!?" Kidd heard the brunette yell from the floor, still out of view. Her head quickly popping up and she locked eyes with the rookie Captain. "Did you say ship and that you're gonna be sailing out today?"

Kidd had heard enough to know where she was going with her question. "I'm not taking you with us." He growled

"Woah Iona calm down. You shouldn't be considering going with those guys. Don't you know who they are? This is reckless even for you." Her friend tried to reason.

"You should listen to flat ass over there girl. We're pirates you know." Kidd said while flashing his signature grin that made most civilians and even some lesser marines run in fear.

The dark haired bartender popped up next to her friend and threw and accusing finger Kidds way. "Hey! Did you just call me flat ass!?"

"I know who you are. I don't care. They're good Tia. I can tell." Iona explained while giving her friend a thumbs up.

"what's the matter flat ass? You called me eyebrows. I thought we were giving each other nicknames based on physical assets we lacked. And you!" Kidd turned his attention to the crazy girl. "I am not good. Don't go around slandering my name like that. Either way we are not taking you."

"I'm even more confused than I was a minute ago." Killer chimed in.

"what's up with the service here by the way. We asked for two ales about 15 minutes ago." Kidd reminded the woman named Tia according to the little Iona chick."

The bartender quickly sprung up to her feet and brushed herself off as she made her way back behind the bar. Her hair was disheveled from the ordeal with her friend and Kidd heard her gumbling something about showing him a flat ass as she began pouring two fresh glasses.

Kidd could have left but he had a couple hours to kill and the bar he was in was the only one in the whole town and he hated to admit it, but it had some of the best Ale he had tasted.

"I'll take one too Tia!" Said Iona cheerily as she made her way over to the stool next to Kidd.

"No." Was all the Captain said as she plopped down next to him.

"aww come on! I'll pay you!" She whined

"I doubt you have enough money for me to tolerate you."

Tia set the three beers in front of them. "To be fair she's not normally this bad. She only gets this way when she meets ummm...'certain types of people' for the first time. She was like this when she first met me too, but after a brief moment of insanity she calmed down. Not that I want you taking her with you or anything."

"The answer is still no." Replied Kidd as he took his new mug in hand.

"When you say pay, what are we talking about here?" Asked Killer

Kidd almost choked on his mouthful of ale. He snapped his head toward Killer and glared causing Killer to put his hands up in a gesture to calm his temperamental Captain.

"Well I can help around the ship, AND you can have this. This alone could buy me a trip around the world three times or more. All I'm asking is for you to get me safely to a friendly island in the New world." She explained while pulling out a small ring.

"The New world!? I don't think I could stand being around you till the next island, but the new world!? We're not even halfway through the first half of the grand line!" Kidd yelled. He eyed the piece of jewelry in her hand. "And what is that trinket worth? 20,000 Belis? Pfft might as well be worthless."

"Try 5 billion belis Red!" Iona said triumphantly. Kidd noticed her smile and cheery face hadn't cracked once. No look of fear or offence as he had yelled at her.

"5 billion my ass. No ring that small would ever be worth that much."

"It is when it's a relic from the missing history period. It even has a name. "Avisha" is what it's called."

"Wait Iona! Isn't that a sacred family heirloom. The one you're supposed to wear when you get married? You shouldn't give that up." Tia interjected.

"Granny wouldn't mind Tia. She wasn't one for tradition and neither am I. It was tradition that had me secluded from all the people on my island, tradition that forced an unwanted engagement on me to a creep, and tradition that kept this ring in my family. If I break the first two I might as well break the last one."

"Can I see that?" Killer asked interrupting the two womens discussion. He eyed the piece and then handed it to Kidd. "That's not an ordinary ring and if we can verify what she says this ring is a gold mine."

Kidd took the ring from his first mate examined it skeptically and then placed it in the break pocket of his fur jacket he had draped over his shoulders. "Thanks for the money." He said with a sneer.

"So you'll take me?" She asked her eyes lighting up.

Kidd had to look away. As much as he hated to admit it those eyes held a power over him and he felt a twinge of guilt. A forgein sensation that he didn't like. "The answer is still no."

"Hmmm, that's a shame." She said, placing her hand in front of his face palm up. "Then I guess you don't want this?" as she spoke those words Kidd watched as the ring materialized in her hand.

"What the hell?" He muttered to himself quickly checking his breast pocket to find that the ring no longer resided where he had placed it. Looking back at her she wore a cocky smile that he knew meant that she knew she had won. The thought infuriated him. "So, you're a devil fruit user?"

"What's that?" She asked

"It means you ate a weird fruit that probably tasted disgusting and gave you those powers. I kind of wondered that myself, but since you can swim I realized that couldn't be it." Her friend Tia explained.

"whaaaaa weird fruit can give you powers!? Man I love the world and all the crazy things there are out there!" The girl exclaimed with a look of wonder on her face.

"If you're not a devil fruit user how did you get that back!?" Kidd yelled at Iona. He was getting more agitated by the minute and the only thing keeping him from ripping the two women to shreds was a firm hand on his shoulder from Killer that told him he's have to listen to another lecture if he went off the rails and acted without thinking. *freakin mother hen*

"I don't know how it works exactly, but this belongs to me. If I have a claim over something I can make it go anywhere I want, within reason of course. The catch is I have had to have been there before. I need to have a clear picture in my mind where I want it placed. So lets say you decided to attack me right now. I could quickly have it drop into the ocean on a route I've been, some random island, or reverse mountain. I may be reckless, but I'm not dumb. I will relinquish ownership of this ring to you when you get me to a nice island in the new world. Once I do that, I suppose you could kill me and I couldn't do anything about it, but I have faith that you won't."

"That's all nice and well miss Iona, but that doesn't help our current financial needs." The more level headed of the Kidd pirates pointed out.

"Then here take this. Consider it a deposit. Of course I want that back after you have gotten my ring. 100,000 Belis" Iona offered as she handed a coin purse to the First Mate.

"Iona how...how did you come by that much money?" Tia asked while eyeing the two men nervously.

"I took it off someone who didn't deserve it." She casually explained as she took a sip of her beer.

"So you stole it?" Her friend deadpanned.

"What!? Tia I do not steal. I liberated it from a bad man that's all."

"That's the same thing Iona."

Ignoring her friends logic she looked at Killer. "So Blue, what's it gonna be? Will you and Red let me go with you?"

"Blue and Red? I'm guessing if we say no you'll take this purse back from me am I right?"

"You catch on quicker than Red here." She replied pointing her thumb in Kidds direction. He could feel himself grinding his teeth. She began to chuckle softly as she continued "Typical Blue."

Killer squeezed Kidds should her coaxed "Kidd..."

"Fine! We'll take you!" He growled. Turning to her he pointed a finger at her and warned. "But, you will obey my orders as if I am your Captain, You will have tasks that make you useful to us, and do not expect us to protect you if we run into trouble! You are responsible for your own well being. Do you understand all that?"

Iona stiffened her back, looked Kidd straight in the eyes, and saluted as she said "Aye, aye Captain!"

"Killer I swear to god I might fucking kill her. Don't get too attached to that ring."

"5 billion belis Kidd, 5 Billion." Killer cooed at his Captain and gave his shoulder one final squeeze before both men finished their beer and headed out to check on their ship.


	2. Ch2

Hey guys I know it's been almost 3 weeks, but I have lots of projects going on! I can't promise a set schedule for each chapter, but I will do my best to try to get at least 1 to 2 chapters out a month. I recently had to cut down my streaming schedule to 3 days a week as I'm dipping my toes in other ventures, like podcasts and YT. But, I still really want to write. I had been stuck the last couple weeks, because the first version of this chapter wasn't resonating with me.

There is going to be a lot of back story for Iona and I want to make sure I set everything up properly for that and her character growth. So, if you're enjoying this so far I hope you'll stick around for Iona's future adventures and endeavors.

**Trigger Warning! **Contains acts of sexual (but not explicit) violence that may make some readers uncomfortable.

Chapter 2. **The Stowaway **

Iona was nearing the dock about an hour after making the agreement with Red and Blue. They had told her to meet them there at 4 and it was 10 minutes till. Tia had followed her to say goodbye, but not before trying to change her mind about going with the pirate crew. Pointing out a lot of things that didn't really bother Iona.

She mentioned how they were known for their cruelty or how she might become mistaken as a pirate and arrested herself. Iona didn't care though. They were both pures, so it didn't matter how they conducted themselves and since they wanted her ring she was positive they weren't much of a threat to her.

"So both guys are pure huh?" Tia asked almost mimicking Iona's thoughts.

"Yup! Red and Blue. Blue isn't much of an issue. Even if he's ruthless, he's levelheaded and his loyalty will make sure he keeps Red in check."

"You know Iona you should probably stop calling that guy Red. It seemed to really rub him the wrong way. You're going to make him angry." Her friend warned

"I know! Reds are amazing! So passionate and because of that they can be pretty temperamental, but it's worth it to see that determination and passion at work. Plus they're passionate in more ways than one!" Iona exclaimed and winked at her friend.

"Woah! You're not seriously considering sleeping with him are you. Iona that's crazy!"

"I don't know. Maybe. Guess I'll see where this new adventure takes me. He's not bad to look at you know, plus he's Red. Red has always been the best lovers I've experienced."

"One! You've had one Red lover according to you. That's not a lot to go off of. You need to think things through more logically Iona!"

Iona waved a dismissive hand at her friend when a mans voice whispered right next to her ear. "So you want to sleep with the Captain, do you?"

Tia jumped at the sudden appearance of the masked man who was bent over talking into her friends ear.

Iona on the other hand didn't seem phased at all. "Oh hey Blue!" She said as she took a step back and turned around to face him. "No one said anything like that. You must be hearing things" She poorly attempted to lie.

"Oh good! You're a bad liar. That could make things easy, and just about. Kidd is checking the storage rooms to make sure we didn't miss anything on our list. Since he's busy with that I decided to wait for you here so I could show you to the room you'll be staying in while you're with us."

"Ahem." Tia sounded to get the other two's attention. "That will be, while **we** stay with you. I'll bunk with Iona."

"We didn't agree to that. The agreement was for one passenger not two." Killer pointed out.

"Ah! Tia! You're coming with me!? It'll be so much fun! Oh, but won't that make your brother mad at you? Did you tell him?" Iona asked

"I left him a note and he'll get over it. I already let the bosss know. Since I can't talk you out of this then it's my responsibility to make sure my future maid of honor makes it to her destination safely. You're too reckless and act without thinking, so someone has to do the thinking for you."

Killer didn't know what to do as the two women talked back and forth. He couldn't agree without Kidds approval, but something told him that letting the tall dark skinned woman on board was going to be his Captains saving grace. He also noted the two womens relationship felt very familiar to his own with his Captain. There had been a lot of times they avoided big trouble thanks to him reeling in Kidd.

"You're going to have to convince the Captain to let you go with us. It's his ship and his crew. He might be a hot head but he takes his responsibilities seriously. One more mouth to feed is a burden." Killer informed her. "I'll take you to him now...it would probably be best if you talked to him without her there." Killer pointed at Iona.

Tia looked over at her friend that was now pouting at being left out. "I think you're right. The Captain doesn't seem like the type that can handle being around Iona too long. Sorry Iona, but I'll be back soon."

They all walked onto the deck of the large vessel. Killer and Tia walked off after instructing Iona to stay put, much to the young womans dismay.

Killer brought Tia to the second level at the back of the ship and led her to the storage areas Kidd was currently in. He was easy to find with all the grumbling he was doing.

Kidd was checking the last storage area. So far they had everything they needed, but the crew had been lazy about putting it away. Crates and barrels were haphazardly placed in each storage section. No sense of purpose or order, making it take longer for him to check each item off his list.

As he was organizing the last room he was muttering to himself, "You guys are in so much trouble. Extra duty for the whole damn lot of you."

Kidd heard the distinct sound of his first mate clearing his throat to get his attention. Kidd turned around to see not only Killer but the busty bartender from earlier by his side.

"What is she doing here?" He asked Killer

"She has a request and I think you should hear her out before you make any snap decisions." Killer told the red head. He turned to Tia and finished. "I'm going to go get Miss Iona and show her to the room, so she can get settled in. I'll come back for you after that. Good luck."

With Killer now gone Kidd finally asked. "What do you want?"

"I'd like to go with Iona. I will stay in the same room as her. I'm a damn good cook and I'm not adverse to cleaning. Also if you are worried about the food I'll use I can pay for my share. I may not have 100,000 like my friend, but I have enough to cover myself."

"Not gonna happen. It's bad enough I let the crazy woman on board, but I don't need the headache of dealing with two of you. Plus that Iona chick will be our new temporary cook. She bragged enough about her food before we left you guys earlier that I decided she could replace Wire."

"Do NOT let her cook! She will kill you all with food poisoning or the taste alone will make you all starve yourselves. Iona thinks she's a good cook, but she is the worst I have ever seen. How she can eat it, is beyond me." Tia sternly informed Kidd. "Also, I thought you'd be happy to have someone on board who could keep Iona occupied. Someone she could talk to. I mean if I'm not here then she's going to seek out someone else and she seems to be a little infatuated with you at the moment."

Kidd took a mental note to keep the small woman out of his kitchen and to never try anything Iona made. He also couldn't help but see the logic in the tall womans statement. He was already dreading a trip with the hyper ball of smiles. Having a buffer on board might not be such a bad idea.

"Fine work out how much you'll need to pay, with Killer, for food. If you can't keep paying for your meals or you don't pull your weight we'll drop you off at the nearest island. Keep that woman in check and the same rules I gave her apply to you. If there is danger, you're on your own."

"Deal! Thanks a bunch Re...err I mean Captain!" Tia exclaimed as she waved and turned around to head back to the stairs to get to the main deck of the ship.

Iona was in her new room for what could be the next several weeks or months. She wasn't quite sure. Killer had already brought Tia in earlier, before he had taken Tia away again, to show her where the kitchen was, since she was going to be their main cook. Iona was a little jealous that not only did Tia get to cook for everyone, but she already had a job.

They had already set sail an hour earlier and Iona was almost done tidying up their room and putting hers and Tia's things away. She knew she should have been suspicious of the large shoulder bag her friend had been carrying on their way to the docks, but Iona wasn't one to put much thought into the things other people did. She just shrugged it off as it was full of something Tia had to deliver somewhere after she had seen her off. Either way Iona was happy. Her friend was coming along. Tia was Iona's first real friend and it made the brunette happy to have a friend that cared about her enough to leave her home for her.

"Tia. Jake is gonna be so mad at you." Iona giggled to herself at the thought of her tall friends marine brother getting her note about sailing away on a pirate ship.

The quarters would be a little tight for her and Tia, Iona noted, but it wouldn't be too big of a deal. The bed was a bit small as it was a full, but at least it wasn't a twin so the two women could make due. There was a small 3 drawer dresser and a stand with some coat hooks. The women hadn't brought a ton of clothing, since Tia was in a hurry and Iona didn't own very much, so there was enough room for their things.

Getting warm Iona took off her coat and hung it on one of the hooks. Her attire was one of her favorites. She wore a short black skirt that poofed out and had frills at the hem. Her t-shirt was like almost all the ones she owned, cropped short so her mid section was showing, but the neck line reached all the way to her collarbone. This one was pink, but she had 4 others like it with varying colors based on her favorite aura colors.

Iona had finished putting her things away, so she began to hum one of the songs her grandma used to sing to her as she began working on Tia's bag of belongings.

She was so focused as she began refolding her friends clothing and humming, that she didn't notice someone had entered the room with her until their hand clamped over her mouth and a strong arm pulled her into a mans chest.

Iona looked down and could see the dark green aura emanating from the mans hand. She tried to scream out, but the man used more force and partially plugged her nose with his large hand as he tightened his grip.

"Shhhh Iona it's just me. Marco."

She could feel her heart start pumping out of control the moment she heard his voice. Somehow he had snuck on the ship. His possessiveness now so out of control that he risked being a stowaway on a notorious pirate ship. He had to be out of his mind.

"You shouldn't have left Iona. You don't get to leave me, and what's mine should stay where they belong." He whispered into her ear as if what he was saying was perfectly normal.

She felt his other hand snake out from behind her caressing her now exposed mid section since she had taken off her coat. His hand moved down and to the side grasping her hip He pushed her hips back making her back side press into his crotch. She could feel him even through the layers of clothing that separated them and she knew what he was planning to do.

She tried to scream out again, but that only made him tighten his grip on her face. It was getting harder to breath and she knew she had to do something quick to get away. She couldn't scream for help so, she struggled.

Iona kicked her foot out kicking the small dresser making it topple to its side noisily and the picture frame that held a photo of her granny shattered on the ground. As this was going on, her hands were still free so, she reached up and began clawing at Marcos face and neck.

He released her mouth to attempt to stop her assault. Iona quickly gulped in the fresh air and then bit his arm as hard as she could causing Marco to scream out.

"You fucking bitch!" He yelled at her forgetting he was trying to be quiet

He spun her around to face him and slammed her into the wall where the dresser had once sat. He grabbed at the top of her skirt and began pulling at the fabric making it tear away from her body.

His brown eyes looked crazed and his blonde hair was wild from the struggle. He wasn't a big man by the world's standards, but he wasn't small either. Marco stood at an even 6 feet tall and he had a lean muscular build. He was more than big enough to over power Iona's small 5'5" frame and 125 poinds

"You can't do this Marco. You need to stop." She pleaded.

"I can do whatever I want with you, YOU belong to me." He growled at her

Iona threw her head forward and felt the crunch of his nose as her forehead made contact. Marco held firm, but for a short period she had hope, when his expression became unfocused. His eyes couldn't seem to find a focal point, but it quickly passed and he took a hand and wiped it under his nose to inspect. She had broken his nose and it was now bleeding, a lot. His face contorted in rage and he brought a hand back. She felt the force of the back of his hand as it hit her and then everything went black.

Kidd stepped out of his room feeling refreshed after a shower. Moving all the crates and barrels below hadn't been a strenuous task, but it had left him feeling grimey.

His room sat on the top deck and he had made his way down to the main deck below. He stood there enjoying the feel of the breeze, finally free of the stale air that cities and towns seemed to dwell in, when he got a weird feeling that something wasn't right. He looked around, none of his men up above seemed to sense anything. Still something unsettled him, so he decided to do a full pass through of his ship. Deciding to start from the bottom up he went to the access point that lead below deck and descended the stairs.

As he started making his way down the long corridor he heard something from one of the rooms on the far end away from the stairs, though he wasn't sure which room it was coming from. The noise sounded like a piece of furniture knocking over and possibly broken glass. Then came an irritated voice. It didn't sound like one of his men, but he was still farther away, so he wasn't sure. Something told him to hurry, so he quickened his pace, but refrained from running.

Moree noises could be heard now as he grew closer. A womans voice, it sounded distressed. The mans voice again, this time Kidd was sure it wasn't one of his guys. The distinct sound of skin hitting skin and a loud thud, he recognized as a body hitting the floor, caused Kidd to begin running the final half of the corridor.

He stopped at the end and listened for any new sounds to give him a clue as to which room. His eyes settled on the door of the new womens room. He knew the one named Tia was already at work in the kitchen, so was the voice he heard the smaller Iona's voice?

Kidd heard a low grunt and the sound of something being dragged on the other side of the door he was focused on. He reacted instantly, foot thrusting out and kicking the door inward.

There right in front of him was a crazed looking blonde man with scratches all over his face and a newly broken nose with blood dripping down passed his chin. He wasn't small, but the look of fear that crossed his face when he looked up at Kidds even larger frame, made it clear that he knew he was screwed.

Kidd was ready to bring a world of hurt to the stowaway, but the scene below the beat up man made Kidd pause.

An unconscious Iona lay beneath the stranger. Bare legs spread out with the man in between them, a large welt on her jaw, her shirt was still on, same for her underwear, but the mans fingers were looped in the fabric of her undergarment. A clear sign of guilt for what he had intended to do. Kidd looked to the side and saw a discarded skirt laying on the ground. It might as well have been a pile of rags now, the ripped fabric making it no longer wearable.

Kidd was not one to shy away from violence, but this was much more than that. It made his stomach churn. The sick feeling quickly began to boil with rage.

Kidd took two steps to close the gap and brought his fist down on the mans face. The stranger crumpled to the floor, but Kidd wasn't done with him yet. He bent down and grabbed the man by the throat. Lifting him off the ground he brought the blondes face up to his. The man was on the verge of losing consciousness and his attempts to get Kidd to lessen his grip on his windpipe were as weak as a small child. Kidd threw his arm out sideways and flung the man out of the room. His body made a loud cracking sound as it came in contact with the wall on the other side of the corridor.

Kidd was about to go after the man who was probably blacked out by now, when his foot caught on something on the floor. He looked down to see it was Iona's leg.

The sight of the battered woman on the floor brought him back to his senses. He still wanted to inflict more pain on the man who thought he could sneak on his ship and assault someone under his roof, but he knew what his priority was at that moment.

He grabbed a blanket off the bed and threw it over her body before scooping her up in his arms. He was more aware of how small she really was as he held her, the crates earlier having weighed significantly more than the tiny woman now cradled to his chest.

As he headed to the door he saw two of his crewmates run up. They looked at the stowaway and then at their Captain.

Wire was the one to ask. "What's going on?"

A pointless question given the stranger and condition of Iona, but Kidd knew what he was really asking.

"I'm going to take her to the Doc. Do something with him and I better not see him on my ship still breathing."

Wire and Tim nodded their heads as Kidd took Iona back down the corridor in the direction of the stairs where the doctors infirmary was located for easy access.

As he carried her he felt her shift slightly. He gazed down at her and saw her face scrunch up in pain. It seemed she was coming to. Her eyes fluttered open, without moving her head that was tucked into his chest she looked up with those big violet orbs. "Hey Red. You smell good."

"That's what you have to say after I find you beat up with a lunatic over top of you?" He asked. If he had had any eyebrows one would have been raised higher than the other as he looked back at her confused.

"That's why I don't like dark green." She responded reclosing her eyes and her face contorted in pain again.

"You're turning into more trouble than you're worth." He grunted at the weird response.

"Mmmm" She nodded in agreement.

With that they had reached the Doc's lair. The woman freaked Kidd out a bit, but she was good at what she did and he couldn't deny that.

He leaned close to the door carefully not to let the woman slip as he awkwardly turned the door handle and then stepped inside.

"Doc! We need some help here!" He shouted out to get the Ships doctors attention.

A tall blonde woman, nearly 6' tall stepped through the door on the other side of the room. She wore her usual tight black leather pants and bright green tank top that left no room for the imagination. She pulled on her white lab coat as her dark brown eyes scanned over Iona in Kidds arms.

"Place her on the bed right there." She instructed while pointing at the only bed in the infirmary.

Kidd placed the unconscious Iona down and stepped back making room for the woman who was skilled, but had made him uncomfortable on many occasions.

"So this is one of our new guests huh? Who did she piss off? I'm guessing it wasn't you; she'd be in worse shape, and Killer would have been the one to bring her here in that case instead of you." She observed.

"This is Iona, and we had a stowaway, who apparently had been stalking her." He answered avoiding any extra conversation than was needed with the doctor.

The womans eyes narrowed at his words as she examined Iona's face. "You took care of him I assume."

"I left him breathing, but gave Wire and Tim orders to finish the job. I figured bringing her to you was more important."

The doctor raised an eyebrow and turned her head to give Kidd a coy smile. "When did Captain Eustass Kidd start thinking so level headed? You have a thing for this poor girl?"

"Pfft poot girl? Lorraine if you had met this girl a couple hours ago you'd feel pity for me." He shot back sounding a little too defensive for the joking question the Doctor posed.

"Hmmm," Lorraine hummed with an I don't believe you tone. She turned her focus back to Iona. "Alright well leave us be. I need to examine her properly without leering eyes." She smirked at that last part.

Kidd decided not to defend himself with that last comment and stormed out of the small infirmary.


End file.
